Constitution

At friendship meeting in Italy, Pope Leo calls for fraternity: ‘Love is the law of life’ #Catholic Pope Leo XIV arrived in the Italian city of Rimini on Aug. 22 to visit the 47th Meeting for Friendship Among the Peoples, telling about 60,000 attendees that “love is the force that can transform the world.”Upon arrival after a brief visit to the country of San Marino, Leo addressed a spontaneous greeting to the people gathered in the auditorium, expressing his joy and pointing out that “the loudest applause should be for Jesus Christ.” Pope Leo XIV greets attendees at the 47th Meeting for Friendship Among the Peoples in Rimini, Italy, Aug. 22, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media “Our hearts, so big and capable of loving, should never be closed. Letʼs find the way together to build a world of peace and love,” he said.In his speech to the gathering, Pope Leo recounted the teachings of his immediate predecessors on social friendship, fraternity and union, highlighting the value of Riminiʼs meeting to achieve these ideals. The annual event is hosted by the international organization Communion and Liberation. He assured the assembly that “in recognizing our dignity as children of God, we come into contact with what originally unites human beings, beyond all diversity, separation or conflict.”“We can identify with each other, listen to each other and establish friendship, between individuals and, therefore, also between peoples. Before borders, definitions and institutions, there are always people,” he added.Reflecting on the pastoral constitution Gaudium et spes of the Second Vatican Council, Pope Leo did not hesitate to affirm that “it is a time of responsibility” among men and that it is love that is the foundation of a fraternal society.“Following Jesus Christ after the tragedies and the new beginnings of the twentieth century implies, in fact, a clear awareness: Evil is not fought with evil. As in heaven, as on earth, love is the law of life, the method of redemption of the crucified Messiah,” he said.“Faced with the false realism that rearms minds, words and nations, the current Catholic culture must counteract the realism of mercy, which maintains that enemies cannot exist and that everyone, even adversaries, are brothers to whom they look into the eyes and receive with sincerity,” he added.Addressing especially young people, Leo told them that they “are a sign that the future is a promise, not a threat” and witnesses of a love that “continues to inspire hope.”“Love moves, drives, awakens from lethargy, inspires new vocations and calls us to take risks. Get involved! Open up to true universality, expanding your ties beyond any too close affiliation,” he said."In every corner of the world, especially in the margins and among those who suffer, you will find those willing to build the civilization of love. Do not allow anyone to belittle this word, which is the very name of God: 'God is love,'" said the Holy Father.“In love, there is never coercion or indoctrination; there is never seduction, deception or manipulation. Love resides only in freedom, in sincere exchange, in generous self-giving.”Finally, he invited young people to remain devoted to Christ to testify, without boasting, in the midst of todayʼs world."May the Holy Spirit instruct us in the practice of communion. That gives us pleasure for [the Holy Spirit], appreciation for him and hope in him. May he continue to guide us, dear brothers and sisters, with that love 'that moves the sun and the other stars'," he concluded.This story was originally published by ACI Prensa, EWTN News’ Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
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At friendship meeting in Italy, Pope Leo calls for fraternity: ‘Love is the law of life’ #Catholic Pope Leo XIV arrived in the Italian city of Rimini on Aug. 22 to visit the 47th Meeting for Friendship Among the Peoples, telling about 60,000 attendees that “love is the force that can transform the world.”Upon arrival after a brief visit to the country of San Marino, Leo addressed a spontaneous greeting to the people gathered in the auditorium, expressing his joy and pointing out that “the loudest applause should be for Jesus Christ.” Pope Leo XIV greets attendees at the 47th Meeting for Friendship Among the Peoples in Rimini, Italy, Aug. 22, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media “Our hearts, so big and capable of loving, should never be closed. Letʼs find the way together to build a world of peace and love,” he said.In his speech to the gathering, Pope Leo recounted the teachings of his immediate predecessors on social friendship, fraternity and union, highlighting the value of Riminiʼs meeting to achieve these ideals. The annual event is hosted by the international organization Communion and Liberation. He assured the assembly that “in recognizing our dignity as children of God, we come into contact with what originally unites human beings, beyond all diversity, separation or conflict.”“We can identify with each other, listen to each other and establish friendship, between individuals and, therefore, also between peoples. Before borders, definitions and institutions, there are always people,” he added.Reflecting on the pastoral constitution Gaudium et spes of the Second Vatican Council, Pope Leo did not hesitate to affirm that “it is a time of responsibility” among men and that it is love that is the foundation of a fraternal society.“Following Jesus Christ after the tragedies and the new beginnings of the twentieth century implies, in fact, a clear awareness: Evil is not fought with evil. As in heaven, as on earth, love is the law of life, the method of redemption of the crucified Messiah,” he said.“Faced with the false realism that rearms minds, words and nations, the current Catholic culture must counteract the realism of mercy, which maintains that enemies cannot exist and that everyone, even adversaries, are brothers to whom they look into the eyes and receive with sincerity,” he added.Addressing especially young people, Leo told them that they “are a sign that the future is a promise, not a threat” and witnesses of a love that “continues to inspire hope.”“Love moves, drives, awakens from lethargy, inspires new vocations and calls us to take risks. Get involved! Open up to true universality, expanding your ties beyond any too close affiliation,” he said."In every corner of the world, especially in the margins and among those who suffer, you will find those willing to build the civilization of love. Do not allow anyone to belittle this word, which is the very name of God: 'God is love,'" said the Holy Father.“In love, there is never coercion or indoctrination; there is never seduction, deception or manipulation. Love resides only in freedom, in sincere exchange, in generous self-giving.”Finally, he invited young people to remain devoted to Christ to testify, without boasting, in the midst of todayʼs world."May the Holy Spirit instruct us in the practice of communion. That gives us pleasure for [the Holy Spirit], appreciation for him and hope in him. May he continue to guide us, dear brothers and sisters, with that love 'that moves the sun and the other stars'," he concluded.This story was originally published by ACI Prensa, EWTN News’ Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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“Our heart, so big and capable of loving, should never be closed. Let’s find the way together to build a world of peace and love,” the pope said to a crowd of thousands.

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Advocates warn New Jersey law could criminalize prayer outside abortion clinics #Catholic New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill on Aug. 20 signed a bill that criminalizes “interference” with “reproductive” or “gender-affirming” care, a law that opponents say has serious implications for freedom of speech.The law criminalizes inflicting “emotional harm” against those seeking or providing “reproductive health care services.” It also bans filming and sharing videos within 100 feet of an abortion clinic.Under the new law, an officer can “order the immediate dispersal of a gathering that substantially impedes access to or departure from an entrance or driveway to a reproductive or gender-affirming health care facility during the business hours of the facility.”The measure is a type of “bubble” law, which creates zones around abortion clinics where free speech is limited in “buffer zones.”Violations of the law could be punished by up to 18 months’ imprisonment and/or a $10,000 fine.New Jersey Right to Life Executive Director Marie Tasy criticized the law, describing its provisions as “inherently subjective” and the law itself as “a serious danger to free speech.”“Peaceful sidewalk counseling, prayer, holding signs, or simply offering help and alternatives outside a facility can easily be labeled ‘intimidation’ by someone who claims to feel threatened, leaving pro-life advocates open to criminal charges that are difficult to disprove and chilling constitutionally protected expression,” Tasy said.Catholic diocese leads campaign against abortion amendment referendumThe Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, is leading a campaign to oppose an amendment referendum that could create a right to abortion in the state constitution as well as another measure that would remove a same-sex marriage ban in the state.The campaign Catholics Vote No is opposing the ballot measure titled the “Virginia Right to Reproductive Freedom Amendment” as well as the “Virginia Remove Constitutional Same-Sex Marriage Ban Amendment.”Arlington Bishop Michael Burbidge describes the measures as “very serious legal threats to human life and marriage” in a video statement.“If written into Virginia’s Constitution, these unjust amendments would be extraordinarily difficult to reverse,” the campaign website states. The abortion amendment would “effectively” make Virginia “a sanctuary for abortion and commercial abortion businesses,” it states. “Basic health and safety standards that protect women from harm would be eliminated, parents would be pushed out of life-altering decisions involving their family and children, and unregulated abortions would be possible, performed even on healthy babies up to the moment of birth for any reason with no limits,” the campaign says.Live Action says it will keep referring to abortion as ‘killing’The pro-life group Live Action has said it will not stop calling abortion “killing” after a pro-abortion group threatened the organization with legal action.Live Action made the declaration in response to a cease-and-desist letter sent by the abortion-supporting legal group Amplify Legal. The dispute is over claims made by Live Action in multiple articles about abortion cases where the unborn baby had a serious life-threatening diagnosis.“Each of our clients has described the decision to end their wanted pregnancy as the most compassionate choice for their own health, future fertility, and family’s wellbeing,” the letter read, arguing that Live Action News “repeatedly [wrote] about our clients intentionally ‘killing’ their babies.”In its response Live Action said it would not follow the request to “delete years of reporting and commentary on the most contested moral and political question in American public life.”“We are fighting for a culture and legal system that respects every human life and refuses to treat the sick, disabled, or unborn as disposable,” said Live Action Founder and President Lila Rose in a statement. “Legal threats against our First Amendment right to speak will not change that mission.”Catholic dad Mark Houck continues pro-life work after federal legal battleCatholic father Mark Houck is joining CatholicVote’s development team as a gift officer, the group announced this week. Houck and his family are adjusting to life after their home in rural eastern Pennsylvania was raided by 20 armed federal agents in the early hours of Sept. 23, 2022. Houck was arrested in front of his family and interrogated for six hours. The incident led to nearly four years of legal battles, which concluded with the family earning a seven-figure settlement for damages.“I am still very much unpacking spiritually what happened to us — very profound and certainly God is revealing his ultimate plan for us through it all, CatholicVote being the latest direction he has taken us,” Houck told EWTN News. “We are so happy to be with an organization that shares our passion for our faith, the pro-life cause, and, of course, advocacy in the public square.”Houck’s role in the organization "will extend beyond that [of a gift officer],” CatholicVote spokeswoman Laurie Olsen told EWTN News. He will “have a voice in all our pro-life efforts,” she said.Houck, meanwhile, told EWTN News: “We measure success by one soul at a time.”“Save a soul, you save your own soul. It is that one soul that gets me going and up early to head into Philadelphia and serve the common good with sidewalk advocacy,” he said.Federal court strikes down Indiana abortion parental-consent lawThe U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit ruled on Aug. 18 against an Indiana law that prevents doctors from providing abortion assistance to minors without parental consent.The 54-page ruling struck down a law that required parental consent to aid or assist a minor in obtaining an abortion. The ruling said that the parental-consent law violated the First Amendment.
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Advocates warn New Jersey law could criminalize prayer outside abortion clinics #Catholic New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill on Aug. 20 signed a bill that criminalizes “interference” with “reproductive” or “gender-affirming” care, a law that opponents say has serious implications for freedom of speech.The law criminalizes inflicting “emotional harm” against those seeking or providing “reproductive health care services.” It also bans filming and sharing videos within 100 feet of an abortion clinic.Under the new law, an officer can “order the immediate dispersal of a gathering that substantially impedes access to or departure from an entrance or driveway to a reproductive or gender-affirming health care facility during the business hours of the facility.”The measure is a type of “bubble” law, which creates zones around abortion clinics where free speech is limited in “buffer zones.”Violations of the law could be punished by up to 18 months’ imprisonment and/or a $10,000 fine.New Jersey Right to Life Executive Director Marie Tasy criticized the law, describing its provisions as “inherently subjective” and the law itself as “a serious danger to free speech.”“Peaceful sidewalk counseling, prayer, holding signs, or simply offering help and alternatives outside a facility can easily be labeled ‘intimidation’ by someone who claims to feel threatened, leaving pro-life advocates open to criminal charges that are difficult to disprove and chilling constitutionally protected expression,” Tasy said.Catholic diocese leads campaign against abortion amendment referendumThe Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, is leading a campaign to oppose an amendment referendum that could create a right to abortion in the state constitution as well as another measure that would remove a same-sex marriage ban in the state.The campaign Catholics Vote No is opposing the ballot measure titled the “Virginia Right to Reproductive Freedom Amendment” as well as the “Virginia Remove Constitutional Same-Sex Marriage Ban Amendment.”Arlington Bishop Michael Burbidge describes the measures as “very serious legal threats to human life and marriage” in a video statement.“If written into Virginia’s Constitution, these unjust amendments would be extraordinarily difficult to reverse,” the campaign website states. The abortion amendment would “effectively” make Virginia “a sanctuary for abortion and commercial abortion businesses,” it states. “Basic health and safety standards that protect women from harm would be eliminated, parents would be pushed out of life-altering decisions involving their family and children, and unregulated abortions would be possible, performed even on healthy babies up to the moment of birth for any reason with no limits,” the campaign says.Live Action says it will keep referring to abortion as ‘killing’The pro-life group Live Action has said it will not stop calling abortion “killing” after a pro-abortion group threatened the organization with legal action.Live Action made the declaration in response to a cease-and-desist letter sent by the abortion-supporting legal group Amplify Legal. The dispute is over claims made by Live Action in multiple articles about abortion cases where the unborn baby had a serious life-threatening diagnosis.“Each of our clients has described the decision to end their wanted pregnancy as the most compassionate choice for their own health, future fertility, and family’s wellbeing,” the letter read, arguing that Live Action News “repeatedly [wrote] about our clients intentionally ‘killing’ their babies.”In its response Live Action said it would not follow the request to “delete years of reporting and commentary on the most contested moral and political question in American public life.”“We are fighting for a culture and legal system that respects every human life and refuses to treat the sick, disabled, or unborn as disposable,” said Live Action Founder and President Lila Rose in a statement. “Legal threats against our First Amendment right to speak will not change that mission.”Catholic dad Mark Houck continues pro-life work after federal legal battleCatholic father Mark Houck is joining CatholicVote’s development team as a gift officer, the group announced this week. Houck and his family are adjusting to life after their home in rural eastern Pennsylvania was raided by 20 armed federal agents in the early hours of Sept. 23, 2022. Houck was arrested in front of his family and interrogated for six hours. The incident led to nearly four years of legal battles, which concluded with the family earning a seven-figure settlement for damages.“I am still very much unpacking spiritually what happened to us — very profound and certainly God is revealing his ultimate plan for us through it all, CatholicVote being the latest direction he has taken us,” Houck told EWTN News. “We are so happy to be with an organization that shares our passion for our faith, the pro-life cause, and, of course, advocacy in the public square.”Houck’s role in the organization "will extend beyond that [of a gift officer],” CatholicVote spokeswoman Laurie Olsen told EWTN News. He will “have a voice in all our pro-life efforts,” she said.Houck, meanwhile, told EWTN News: “We measure success by one soul at a time.”“Save a soul, you save your own soul. It is that one soul that gets me going and up early to head into Philadelphia and serve the common good with sidewalk advocacy,” he said.Federal court strikes down Indiana abortion parental-consent lawThe U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit ruled on Aug. 18 against an Indiana law that prevents doctors from providing abortion assistance to minors without parental consent.The 54-page ruling struck down a law that required parental consent to aid or assist a minor in obtaining an abortion. The ruling said that the parental-consent law violated the First Amendment.

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Here is a roundup of recent pro-life and abortion-related news.

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U.S. bishops urge Supreme Court to require 12-person juries for criminal cases #Catholic The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to require 12-person juries in criminal cases, with the bishops arguing against a Florida policy allowing smaller six-person juries in many cases. The case Kian v. Florida, which the Supreme Court agreed to hear in June, was brought after Florida chiropractor Hamed Kian was convicted of five felony counts for practicing without a license. Kian was found guilty by a six-person jury; the state of Florida only requires 12-person juries in capital cases. Several other states have similar rules. Kian sued the state arguing that the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees a right to a 12-person jury. He lost his appeal at the Fourth District Court of Appeal of Florida and subsequently appealed directly to the Supreme Court, which will hold arguments in the case in its upcoming term. In their amicus filing, the U.S. bishops argued that the term “jury” in the U.S. has historically referenced a body of 12 jurors; the bishops pointed to “Founding-era dictionaries” as well as “common-law history.” The bishops said they have a “strong interest” in the case, insofar as the Catholic Church over the centuries has played a “central role in shaping the legal culture from which the common-law jury emerged.”Among the historical examples of 12-person juries the bishops cited include the General Fundamentals of Plymouth, “the earliest codified legal system by English colonists in North America,” which guaranteed that “all trials” would be “tried by a jury of twelve good and lawful men.” The prelates disputed the Supreme Court’s 1970 ruling in the case Williams v. Florida, which held that the Sixth Amendment does not require 12 jurors in court cases. That ruling in part “discard[ed] the robust common-law history of the jury right,” while the high court in that decision “set far too high a bar for historical relevance,” they said.The bishops further cited the biblical commandment to “love your neighbor justly.” They pointed to the Catholic catechism’s mandate for public authorities to “dispense justice humanely by respecting the rights of everyone.” They urged the Supreme Court to “return to its previously long-held understanding that the Constitution entitles criminal defendants to a jury of twelve of their peers.”Numerous advocacy groups have also filed amicus briefs advocating the 12-juror standard, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the Innocence Project, several dozen current and former prosecutors, and the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
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U.S. bishops urge Supreme Court to require 12-person juries for criminal cases #Catholic The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to require 12-person juries in criminal cases, with the bishops arguing against a Florida policy allowing smaller six-person juries in many cases. The case Kian v. Florida, which the Supreme Court agreed to hear in June, was brought after Florida chiropractor Hamed Kian was convicted of five felony counts for practicing without a license. Kian was found guilty by a six-person jury; the state of Florida only requires 12-person juries in capital cases. Several other states have similar rules. Kian sued the state arguing that the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees a right to a 12-person jury. He lost his appeal at the Fourth District Court of Appeal of Florida and subsequently appealed directly to the Supreme Court, which will hold arguments in the case in its upcoming term. In their amicus filing, the U.S. bishops argued that the term “jury” in the U.S. has historically referenced a body of 12 jurors; the bishops pointed to “Founding-era dictionaries” as well as “common-law history.” The bishops said they have a “strong interest” in the case, insofar as the Catholic Church over the centuries has played a “central role in shaping the legal culture from which the common-law jury emerged.”Among the historical examples of 12-person juries the bishops cited include the General Fundamentals of Plymouth, “the earliest codified legal system by English colonists in North America,” which guaranteed that “all trials” would be “tried by a jury of twelve good and lawful men.” The prelates disputed the Supreme Court’s 1970 ruling in the case Williams v. Florida, which held that the Sixth Amendment does not require 12 jurors in court cases. That ruling in part “discard[ed] the robust common-law history of the jury right,” while the high court in that decision “set far too high a bar for historical relevance,” they said.The bishops further cited the biblical commandment to “love your neighbor justly.” They pointed to the Catholic catechism’s mandate for public authorities to “dispense justice humanely by respecting the rights of everyone.” They urged the Supreme Court to “return to its previously long-held understanding that the Constitution entitles criminal defendants to a jury of twelve of their peers.”Numerous advocacy groups have also filed amicus briefs advocating the 12-juror standard, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the Innocence Project, several dozen current and former prosecutors, and the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

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The bishops argue that the term “jury” in the U.S. has historically referenced a body of 12 jurors.

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Is the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary a holy day of obligation this year? #Catholic Catholics celebrate the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary each year on Aug. 15. The solemnity commemorates the Church’s teaching that Mary, at the end of her earthly life, was taken body and soul into heaven.In 1950, Pope Pius XII confirmed this belief about the Virgin Mary when he defined it formally — “ex cathedra” — as a dogma of the Catholic faith. In his apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus, it states “that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.”So, is this solemnity a holy day of obligation? It depends on what day it falls on.In the United States, Latin-rite Catholics are bound by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) canon law norms, which require Mass attendance on Sundays and six specific holy days of obligation. However, regional exceptions and calendar-based rule adjustments can apply depending on the day of the week a feast lands.The six holy days of obligations are: Jan. 1, solemnity of Mary, Mother of God; Thursday of the sixth week of Easter, solemnity of the Ascension; Aug. 15, solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Nov. 1, solemnity of All Saints; Dec. 8, solemnity of the Immaculate Conception; and Dec. 25, Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ.However, when Jan. 1, the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God; Aug. 15, the solemnity of the Assumption; or Nov. 1, the solemnity of All Saints, falls on a Saturday or on a Monday, the obligation to attend Mass is lifted.According to Canon 1246, paragraph 2, of the Code of Canon Law, “the conference of bishops can abolish certain holy days of obligation or transfer them to a Sunday with prior approval of the Apostolic See.”Since the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary falls on a Saturday this year, 2026, Catholics are not required to attend Mass in addition to the regular Sunday obligation.
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Is the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary a holy day of obligation this year? #Catholic Catholics celebrate the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary each year on Aug. 15. The solemnity commemorates the Church’s teaching that Mary, at the end of her earthly life, was taken body and soul into heaven.In 1950, Pope Pius XII confirmed this belief about the Virgin Mary when he defined it formally — “ex cathedra” — as a dogma of the Catholic faith. In his apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus, it states “that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.”So, is this solemnity a holy day of obligation? It depends on what day it falls on.In the United States, Latin-rite Catholics are bound by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) canon law norms, which require Mass attendance on Sundays and six specific holy days of obligation. However, regional exceptions and calendar-based rule adjustments can apply depending on the day of the week a feast lands.The six holy days of obligations are: Jan. 1, solemnity of Mary, Mother of God; Thursday of the sixth week of Easter, solemnity of the Ascension; Aug. 15, solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Nov. 1, solemnity of All Saints; Dec. 8, solemnity of the Immaculate Conception; and Dec. 25, Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ.However, when Jan. 1, the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God; Aug. 15, the solemnity of the Assumption; or Nov. 1, the solemnity of All Saints, falls on a Saturday or on a Monday, the obligation to attend Mass is lifted.According to Canon 1246, paragraph 2, of the Code of Canon Law, “the conference of bishops can abolish certain holy days of obligation or transfer them to a Sunday with prior approval of the Apostolic See.”Since the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary falls on a Saturday this year, 2026, Catholics are not required to attend Mass in addition to the regular Sunday obligation.

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The obligation to attend Mass on the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary depends on what day it falls on.

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Catholic legal group criticizes Trump’s birthright-citizenship order as bishops plan to monitor #Catholic A Catholic legal group criticized President Donald Trump’s executive orders to restrict birthright citizenship, and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is reviewing and monitoring them.The executive orders issued Aug. 6 direct the government to stop allowing foreign visitors to enter the United States on short‑term visas for the purpose of giving birth and impose a narrower limit on birthright citizenship after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a broader attempt to end citizenship for children born to people in the country temporarily or unlawfully.One executive order would end automatic birthright citizenship for the children of parents who are not U.S. citizens and engage in a commercial transaction or fraudulent activity to ensure the mother is inside U.S. territory to give birth. It also would end birthright citizenship for a child born of a parent considered an “alien enemy,” including members of terrorist organizations.A second executive order titled “Ending Birth Tourism” authorizes federal departments to implement rules that prevent the entry of pregnant foreign women seeking to give birth in the United States and allow removal if they enter the country. The order refers to noncitizens entering the U.S. for the purpose of giving birth on American soil and efforts from a foreign national to coordinate such entries.Under existing State Department guidance, consular officers can deny a B‑1/B‑2 visitor visa if they believe the applicant’s primary purpose is to give birth in the U.S. to obtain citizenship for the child.Anna Gallagher, executive director of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), criticized the birthright citizenship executive order in a statement to EWTN News.“The Supreme Court has already spoken: birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the Constitution,” Gallagher said.“This latest attempt by the Trump administration to circumvent settled law only creates needless fear and uncertainty for immigrant families,” she added. “Catholic social teaching calls us to uphold the dignity of every person and welcome the stranger — not seek new ways to exclude them.”The USCCB has not taken a clear position on the executive orders yet, but it is monitoring how they are enforced and potential judicial proceedings.“The USCCB supports the application of constitutional principles and the rule of law in a manner consistent with the God-given dignity of every human person,” USCCB spokesperson Chieko Noguchi told EWTN News.“We’re reviewing the executive orders and will continue to monitor for administrative actions taken and possible judicial proceedings concerning their implementation,” she said.In June, the Supreme Court ruled the 14th Amendment of the Constitution protects automatic birthright citizenship with few exceptions. The protection extends to children who are born to people who are in the country unlawfully.Although the majority opinion did not directly address “birth tourism,” it did clearly say birthright citizenship applies to the children of parents who are “unlawfully or temporarily present” in the country.The “birth tourism” concern appeared in the dissents authored by both Justice Samuel Alito and Justice Clarence Thomas.Alito, in his dissent, wrote that he believed the majority’s opinion protects birthright citizenship to “the children of ‘birth tourists,’” though saying he does not not agree with the ruling.Thomas wrote in his dissent that people have taken advantage of birthright citizenship through “birth tourism” and said there are companies that “collect large fees from wealthy foreigners to facilitate their trips to give birth in the United States.”However, in the majority opinion, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that words like “temporary” and “lawful” do not appear in the citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment: “For a simple reason: they did not matter.”Ashley Feasley, a legal expert for the Immigration Law and Policy Initiative at The Catholic University of America, told EWTN News she believes the executive orders are “an attempt to undermine” the Supreme Court.“Although they will almost certainly face legal challenge, in the interim they will place a profound burden on some of the most vulnerable migrants, pregnant women, and on the officers who work diligently to defend our borders,” she said.“Requiring Department of Homeland Security officials to interrogate women, many of whom have legal visas, about their pregnancies, even turning them away from ports of entry without clearly defined criteria for doing so, risks harming both woman and unborn child and diverts DHS officers' attention from the vital missions of border security and trade facilitation,” Feasley said. Legal challenges have not yet been filed.
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Catholic legal group criticizes Trump’s birthright-citizenship order as bishops plan to monitor #Catholic A Catholic legal group criticized President Donald Trump’s executive orders to restrict birthright citizenship, and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is reviewing and monitoring them.The executive orders issued Aug. 6 direct the government to stop allowing foreign visitors to enter the United States on short‑term visas for the purpose of giving birth and impose a narrower limit on birthright citizenship after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a broader attempt to end citizenship for children born to people in the country temporarily or unlawfully.One executive order would end automatic birthright citizenship for the children of parents who are not U.S. citizens and engage in a commercial transaction or fraudulent activity to ensure the mother is inside U.S. territory to give birth. It also would end birthright citizenship for a child born of a parent considered an “alien enemy,” including members of terrorist organizations.A second executive order titled “Ending Birth Tourism” authorizes federal departments to implement rules that prevent the entry of pregnant foreign women seeking to give birth in the United States and allow removal if they enter the country. The order refers to noncitizens entering the U.S. for the purpose of giving birth on American soil and efforts from a foreign national to coordinate such entries.Under existing State Department guidance, consular officers can deny a B‑1/B‑2 visitor visa if they believe the applicant’s primary purpose is to give birth in the U.S. to obtain citizenship for the child.Anna Gallagher, executive director of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), criticized the birthright citizenship executive order in a statement to EWTN News.“The Supreme Court has already spoken: birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the Constitution,” Gallagher said.“This latest attempt by the Trump administration to circumvent settled law only creates needless fear and uncertainty for immigrant families,” she added. “Catholic social teaching calls us to uphold the dignity of every person and welcome the stranger — not seek new ways to exclude them.”The USCCB has not taken a clear position on the executive orders yet, but it is monitoring how they are enforced and potential judicial proceedings.“The USCCB supports the application of constitutional principles and the rule of law in a manner consistent with the God-given dignity of every human person,” USCCB spokesperson Chieko Noguchi told EWTN News.“We’re reviewing the executive orders and will continue to monitor for administrative actions taken and possible judicial proceedings concerning their implementation,” she said.In June, the Supreme Court ruled the 14th Amendment of the Constitution protects automatic birthright citizenship with few exceptions. The protection extends to children who are born to people who are in the country unlawfully.Although the majority opinion did not directly address “birth tourism,” it did clearly say birthright citizenship applies to the children of parents who are “unlawfully or temporarily present” in the country.The “birth tourism” concern appeared in the dissents authored by both Justice Samuel Alito and Justice Clarence Thomas.Alito, in his dissent, wrote that he believed the majority’s opinion protects birthright citizenship to “the children of ‘birth tourists,’” though saying he does not not agree with the ruling.Thomas wrote in his dissent that people have taken advantage of birthright citizenship through “birth tourism” and said there are companies that “collect large fees from wealthy foreigners to facilitate their trips to give birth in the United States.”However, in the majority opinion, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that words like “temporary” and “lawful” do not appear in the citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment: “For a simple reason: they did not matter.”Ashley Feasley, a legal expert for the Immigration Law and Policy Initiative at The Catholic University of America, told EWTN News she believes the executive orders are “an attempt to undermine” the Supreme Court.“Although they will almost certainly face legal challenge, in the interim they will place a profound burden on some of the most vulnerable migrants, pregnant women, and on the officers who work diligently to defend our borders,” she said.“Requiring Department of Homeland Security officials to interrogate women, many of whom have legal visas, about their pregnancies, even turning them away from ports of entry without clearly defined criteria for doing so, risks harming both woman and unborn child and diverts DHS officers' attention from the vital missions of border security and trade facilitation,” Feasley said. Legal challenges have not yet been filed.

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The Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC) criticized an executive order targeting birthright citizenship. The U.S. Catholic bishops are reviewing and monitoring the order.

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France legalizes euthanasia after forceful push through Parliament #Catholic The French National Assembly gave final approval on July 15 to a bill legalizing euthanasia and assisted suicide, making France one of the few European countries to legalize the practice along with Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Spain. The 291-241 vote came three years after President Emmanuel Macron, who had made it one of his key campaign promises, first opened the question to national debate.The vote ended an unusual parliamentary stalemate between the National Assembly and the Senate. Members of the National Assembly passed the bill three times over the course of 14 months — most recently on June 30 by a vote of 295 to 232 — and senators rejected it just as many times. On July 7, the Senate passed, by a narrow majority of 169 to 164, with 11 abstentions, a preliminary motion to outright reject the bill rather than debate it, and this motion itself called on the government to end the legislative process. Rather than heeding this call, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu invoked Article 45 of the Constitution, which allows the government to give the National Assembly the final say when repeated readings fail to produce an agreement between the two chambers. He then referred the bill back to the National Assembly for a fourth and final vote instead of a fourth reading in the Senate.The July 15 vote, however, did not close the matter. On July 14, Lecornu announced he would refer part of the text to the Constitutional Council, a step Senate President Gérard Larcher had also urged, citing in particular how the billʼs conscience clause would interact with health and social care facilities built around end-of-life accompaniment that exclude assisted dying. The council must rule within a month, or eight days if the government asks for an expedited review, meaning the law cannot be promulgated until that review is complete even though the Assembly has now adopted it.The end-of-life law covers both euthanasia, administered by a doctor or nurse, and assisted suicide, in which the patient self-administers a lethal substance, under five cumulative conditions: A person must be an adult, a stable resident of France, diagnosed with a serious and incurable condition, in an advanced or terminal phase of that condition, and suffering in a way current treatment cannot relieve, while remaining able to express a free and informed decision. Self-administration is supposed to be the default rule, with the law providing for intervention by a healthcare professional only when the patient is physically unable to act.A supporting measure aimed at expanding access to palliative care was adopted with much broader support, passing its first reading in the Senate by a vote of 307 to 17. To date, more than 20% of French departments still lack a palliative care unit, according to figures cited repeatedly by the Bishops’ Conference of France during the debate.The push to legalize assisted dying traces back to September 2022, when the National Consultative Ethics Committee reversed its earlier opposition to assisted dying and endorsed an “ethical” application of the practice. A citizens’ panel Macron had convened spent the following winter weighing the question and backed legalization.The French president unveiled the outline of a bill in March 2024, but the initiative stalled when he dissolved the Assembly in June the same year. Deputy Olivier Falorni, who had filed an earlier and unsuccessful end-of-life bill, revived it in 2025.Critics argue the newly adopted framework is among the most permissive of its kind in the world. Grégor Puppinck, a Catholic lawyer and director general of the European Centre for Law and Justice, has published a point-by-point analysis contending that the entire process rests on the judgment of a single physician, who may meet the patient for the first time on the day of the request and need not be the one already treating them.The two additional professionals that physician must consult are chosen by the same person, are not required to examine the patient in person, and may be consulted by videoconference. Puppinck noted the statute sets no minimum interval between the decision and the act itself beyond a two-day reflection window, relatives have no guaranteed right to be informed beforehand, and they cannot challenge the outcome in court. Doctors who object in conscience must still refer patients to a colleague willing to proceed, and private and religious institutions, including nursing homes, must accommodate mobile euthanasia teams under threat of administrative penalties. Oversight, in Puppinck’s account, comes only after death, based on a report filed by the same clinician who carried it out.The founders of the ethics collective Democracy, Ethics, and Solidarity, Laurent Frémont and Emmanuel Hirsch, wrote in Le Journal du Dimanche that the law’s eligibility criteria — primarily a “serious and incurable condition” causing “unbearable suffering,” are defined vaguely enough that a strict medical interpretation could make more than 1 million people eligible, including patients with chronic illnesses, psychiatric disorders, or advanced age, without requiring a prior written request, a peer review by medical colleagues, or a psychiatric evaluation.A 2025 study by the Fondation pour l’innovation politique estimated the measure could save the state around 1.4 billion euros (.6 billion) a year in health, eldercare, and pension spending, a projection critics have cited as evidence of the pressures vulnerable and elderly patients could face once the law takes effect.The French bishops’ conference called the text a threat to “the most fragile” among French citizens in a statement issued in May 2025 ahead of the Assembly’s first vote on the bill. The archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, has repeatedly urged lawmakers to reconsider their position, asserting that true solidarity is built through caring for others rather than through death. “More than assistance in dying, our society needs assistance in living,” he has repeatedly stated.In a video appeal to lawmakers released before the vote, Archbishop Vincent Jordy of Tours invoked François Rabelais’ centuries-old warning that “science without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.” What is underway, he said, is “an anthropological shift,” a new way of viewing life and its end that will gradually reshape the country, touching caregivers, families, people with disabilities, and the relationship between generations. He pointed to the Netherlands, where regulators had layered on safeguards for two decades and where health officials confirmed in June that a child under 12 had been euthanized for the first time, under a 2024 expansion of the law to children between the ages of 1 and 12. Making a law, Jordy said, is also opening doors toward things “one had perhaps not imagined” when it was written.
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France legalizes euthanasia after forceful push through Parliament #Catholic The French National Assembly gave final approval on July 15 to a bill legalizing euthanasia and assisted suicide, making France one of the few European countries to legalize the practice along with Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Spain. The 291-241 vote came three years after President Emmanuel Macron, who had made it one of his key campaign promises, first opened the question to national debate.The vote ended an unusual parliamentary stalemate between the National Assembly and the Senate. Members of the National Assembly passed the bill three times over the course of 14 months — most recently on June 30 by a vote of 295 to 232 — and senators rejected it just as many times. On July 7, the Senate passed, by a narrow majority of 169 to 164, with 11 abstentions, a preliminary motion to outright reject the bill rather than debate it, and this motion itself called on the government to end the legislative process. Rather than heeding this call, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu invoked Article 45 of the Constitution, which allows the government to give the National Assembly the final say when repeated readings fail to produce an agreement between the two chambers. He then referred the bill back to the National Assembly for a fourth and final vote instead of a fourth reading in the Senate.The July 15 vote, however, did not close the matter. On July 14, Lecornu announced he would refer part of the text to the Constitutional Council, a step Senate President Gérard Larcher had also urged, citing in particular how the billʼs conscience clause would interact with health and social care facilities built around end-of-life accompaniment that exclude assisted dying. The council must rule within a month, or eight days if the government asks for an expedited review, meaning the law cannot be promulgated until that review is complete even though the Assembly has now adopted it.The end-of-life law covers both euthanasia, administered by a doctor or nurse, and assisted suicide, in which the patient self-administers a lethal substance, under five cumulative conditions: A person must be an adult, a stable resident of France, diagnosed with a serious and incurable condition, in an advanced or terminal phase of that condition, and suffering in a way current treatment cannot relieve, while remaining able to express a free and informed decision. Self-administration is supposed to be the default rule, with the law providing for intervention by a healthcare professional only when the patient is physically unable to act.A supporting measure aimed at expanding access to palliative care was adopted with much broader support, passing its first reading in the Senate by a vote of 307 to 17. To date, more than 20% of French departments still lack a palliative care unit, according to figures cited repeatedly by the Bishops’ Conference of France during the debate.The push to legalize assisted dying traces back to September 2022, when the National Consultative Ethics Committee reversed its earlier opposition to assisted dying and endorsed an “ethical” application of the practice. A citizens’ panel Macron had convened spent the following winter weighing the question and backed legalization.The French president unveiled the outline of a bill in March 2024, but the initiative stalled when he dissolved the Assembly in June the same year. Deputy Olivier Falorni, who had filed an earlier and unsuccessful end-of-life bill, revived it in 2025.Critics argue the newly adopted framework is among the most permissive of its kind in the world. Grégor Puppinck, a Catholic lawyer and director general of the European Centre for Law and Justice, has published a point-by-point analysis contending that the entire process rests on the judgment of a single physician, who may meet the patient for the first time on the day of the request and need not be the one already treating them.The two additional professionals that physician must consult are chosen by the same person, are not required to examine the patient in person, and may be consulted by videoconference. Puppinck noted the statute sets no minimum interval between the decision and the act itself beyond a two-day reflection window, relatives have no guaranteed right to be informed beforehand, and they cannot challenge the outcome in court. Doctors who object in conscience must still refer patients to a colleague willing to proceed, and private and religious institutions, including nursing homes, must accommodate mobile euthanasia teams under threat of administrative penalties. Oversight, in Puppinck’s account, comes only after death, based on a report filed by the same clinician who carried it out.The founders of the ethics collective Democracy, Ethics, and Solidarity, Laurent Frémont and Emmanuel Hirsch, wrote in Le Journal du Dimanche that the law’s eligibility criteria — primarily a “serious and incurable condition” causing “unbearable suffering,” are defined vaguely enough that a strict medical interpretation could make more than 1 million people eligible, including patients with chronic illnesses, psychiatric disorders, or advanced age, without requiring a prior written request, a peer review by medical colleagues, or a psychiatric evaluation.A 2025 study by the Fondation pour l’innovation politique estimated the measure could save the state around 1.4 billion euros ($1.6 billion) a year in health, eldercare, and pension spending, a projection critics have cited as evidence of the pressures vulnerable and elderly patients could face once the law takes effect.The French bishops’ conference called the text a threat to “the most fragile” among French citizens in a statement issued in May 2025 ahead of the Assembly’s first vote on the bill. The archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, has repeatedly urged lawmakers to reconsider their position, asserting that true solidarity is built through caring for others rather than through death. “More than assistance in dying, our society needs assistance in living,” he has repeatedly stated.In a video appeal to lawmakers released before the vote, Archbishop Vincent Jordy of Tours invoked François Rabelais’ centuries-old warning that “science without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.” What is underway, he said, is “an anthropological shift,” a new way of viewing life and its end that will gradually reshape the country, touching caregivers, families, people with disabilities, and the relationship between generations. He pointed to the Netherlands, where regulators had layered on safeguards for two decades and where health officials confirmed in June that a child under 12 had been euthanized for the first time, under a 2024 expansion of the law to children between the ages of 1 and 12. Making a law, Jordy said, is also opening doors toward things “one had perhaps not imagined” when it was written.

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The vote, ending an unusual parliamentary stalemate between the National Assembly and the Senate, came three years after President Emmanuel Macron first opened the question to national debate.

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In the Style of Rembrandt – recreate ‘George Washington’ By Gilbert Stuart – #AIPrompt #AIart
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In the Style of Rembrandt – recreate ‘George Washington’ By Gilbert Stuart – #AIPrompt #AIart

unitedyam

After the war, Washington’s dedication to the nascent nation did not wane. He presided over the Constitutional Convention in 1787, where his support was crucial in the drafting and ratification of the U.S. Constitution. In 1789, he was unanimously elected as the first President of the United States, serving two terms and setting many precedents for the office. Washington’s presidency established the foundations of American governance, including the creation of a stable financial system, the establishment of the executive cabinet, and the tradition of a peaceful transfer of power. Retiring to his beloved Mount Vernon in 1797, he remained a symbol of national unity until his death on December 14, 1799. Washington’s legacy as a leader of integrity, courage, and vision continues to inspire generations.

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